Cancer Myths That Might Surprise You
For my research I am studying the genetics of cancer. I was recently reading a book about Cancer Biology, and it explained that some of the things most people believe about cancer simply have not been proven through research. This does not necessarily mean they are not true; but it’s interesting because we should not accept them as fact just because they are believed by most people or seem intuitive to us.
Below are some quotes from this book.
“Cancer is a dreadful disease. In most polls, it is the most feared disease of all. Coupled with this are the almost daily media reports of another carcinogen or cancer risk being found in our environment that produce a setting for the sometimes hysterical fear that cancer lurks around every corner…
“Described below are some commonly held myths about agents that cause cancer.”
“Passive smoking: Inhalation of smoke in an enclosed space, especially for prolonged periods of time, is not healthy. It may trigger an asthmatic attack in a child, for example. There are studies that show if nonsmokers are in a 10 x 10 square foot room with smokers, within a short time of exposure, effects on the cardiovascular system, e.g., heart rate and blood pressure, can be observed. This is not surprising. Nicotine, after all, is a drug that can cause cardiovascular and central nervous system effects. The data for passive smoking causing lung cancer, however, are skimpy at best.”
“Radon in the home: … radon is a well-established occupational carcinogen. There are significant data indicating an increased risk of lung cancer in deep-well miners, particularly among miners who smoke…Since radon in the soil can seep into homes in areas where there is a high natural soil context of radon gas there has been concern that this exposure presents a potential risk of lung cancer. These risk assesments used the exposure dose-response relationship from studies of uranium miners and miners of other ores..Based on assumptions from this model and extrapolations from occupational data, it has been stated that radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer after cigarette smoking, although these authors admit that ‘the effect of smoking on lung cancer risk appears to be an order of magnitude greater than the effect of radon…A significant amount of data does not support this claim of the association of radon exposure in the home and lung cancer.
“Cell phones: A number of human epidemiological and occupational exposure studies do not support any association of cell phone risk and cancer.”
“Electromagnetic fields: A very careful study done by National Cancer Institute investigators and their collaborators directly measured magnetic fields in cases’ and controls’ bedrooms, three or four other rooms, and the front doors of their houses…The results of this study showed that the risk of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (the most common malignancy of childhood) as not increased among children who lived in homes with the highest exposure to magnetic fields, and there was also no significant increased risk with magnetic-field levels of the homes where the mothers resided when pregnant.
“Alcohol: Chronic alcohol abuse is associated with increased risk of certain cancers such as liver and oral pharyngeal cancers…There have been a number of studies of the potential risk of alcohol consumption and breast cancer. [However, the findings from these studies are conflicting.]”
Some other factors that have not been proven conclusively through research: “antipersirants, water chlorination, abortion or miscarriage, asbestos, saccharin, acrylamide in foods, SV40 virus in early polio vaccines.” For more details, see the book below.
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June 11th, 2008 at 4:29 pm
I’ve often worried that keeping my cell phone in my pocket will create some sort of cancer in me, so I hope this is true.